


Teach Me To Care

by cosynaesheim



Category: SKAM (Norway)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Teachers, Angst, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Even just wants to have fun, Fluff, I hope this is cute, Isak is a serious worker bee, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-04-27 11:14:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14424213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosynaesheim/pseuds/cosynaesheim
Summary: Isak has taken a part-time job at Nissen as the professor of Biology. He loves it. It means he's earning some extra money as well as studying at Uni. He's serious about his work and has very little time for anything that isn't academic so it's really no surprise when Even, an Arts professor with a more modern approch to teaching, has the tendency to get on Isak's nerves.Or, A Teaching AU where Isak is a serious worker bee and Even just wants to have fun.





	1. I Know You

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is inspired by a tweet by @HazzaSerenade so this is dedicated to you Itziar! Love you <3  
> This is my first time writing for the Skam fandom and I don't expect to be perfect right away for if you have any suggestions please don't hesitate to send them my way! I'm @cosynaesheim on twitter and tumblr. There is something up with my tumblr asks at the minute so if you wanted to shoot me an ask, use @roseafloweret on tumblr which is my personal account. 
> 
> This story should just be something cute and fun as I'm innocent and awkward with intemacy ehe. I hope you enjoy :)

Monday:

The first day of term has always been an eagerly awaited day for Isak, even when he was a student. There’s something about the buzz of school that he always found himself missing over the summer. He’s never been someone to dread the incoming workload of a new school year and he considers himself capable of handling almost anything school could throw his way. Which is why he boarded the tram early on a Monday filled with trepidation about what this year would bring him.

  
He’d been teaching part-time at Hartvig Nissen School for just over a year as part of his Biochemistry degree course. When he was a student at Nissen, teaching was never something that he imagined himself doing and he would often find himself feeling especially sorry for the professors as most student somehow never managed to come into class with the right mindset to learn, so it came as a surprise to him that he was willing to gain some practical experience in the form of teaching alongside his University studies. Originally, when he’d first been offered the position he’d thought about turning it down, thinking that a job could get in the way of his research which is what he really wanted to focus on. His mind was quickly changed however when his long-term best friend recalled to him with great enthusiasm how teaching had helped him to gain a deeper and more solidified understanding of his own course content.

  
“It made me so much more confident!” Jonas had said whilst chewing through a kebab.

  
Isak distinctly remembers thinking that there was no way Jonas could have needed to become any more confident than he already was because to Isak, Jonas was the most confident person in the world. Despite this, he trusted Jonas and took his advice to let his course adviser know he’d be accepting the job. He figured that earning some extra cash couldn’t do any harm for a 21-year-old Uni student living in a rented flat in central Oslo.

  
After about a week on the job, Isak discovered that he was a relatively strict teacher. He’d always been very focused on his studies at school and achieving to the best of his ability is something that is continuously important to him but it still startled him how quickly he began to have no time for his classes jokes and attitudes to learning. He wanted to teach, to plan lessons, for his pupils to listen and most importantly for them to learn. He took his work very seriously and apart from the occasional yelling he had to do in class, he enjoyed every aspect of his role as Nissen’s Biology teacher.

  
-

  
He stepped off the tram with his box of resources under one arm, pushed his glasses up his nose, made his way to the small school building and into the staff room for his morning briefing.

  
When he arrived, many of the staff were already gathered around the conference style table sharing summer stories. Isak’s summer had been for the most part, uneventful. He had visited his Mother, studied for his course and slept when he had the chance, so he opted out of joining any summer related conversations and took a seat near the end of the table.

  
“Hey, Isak!” Someone greeted him, slapping his back before taking the seat next to him.

  
“Oh hey, Magnus.” Isak smiled at him before turning towards him in his chair to appear more polite than he was feeling.

  
Magnus was the school’s gym teacher. Isak liked him and found him to be good company but he had the common tendency to be too forward at times. Talking to him was always a roulette, you never knew what he was going to ask you next.

  
“How was your summer? Get any action?” Magnus asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. Possibly a bit too suggestively for a workplace.

  
Isak huffed. “Not sure why those two questions need to be asked together Mags but yes, I did have a good summer.”

  
He purposely ignored the second part of Magnus’s questions and hoped that he’d get the message. Alas, he did not.

  
“But did you get laid Isak? I did. It was awesome, this girl so was so good at-“

  
Isak didn’t even need to hear the end of that sentence to know that it was too much information. “Wow, maybe not the best time to be telling me that - we are literally in a school, remember?” He said, pretending that appropriate workplace conversation rules were high up on his list of priorities. In reality, he knew that talking to Magnus about this type of thing was risky business, he’s a great guy but he’s the worst at keeping secrets and Isak’s love life was most definitely a secret.

  
In high school, he’d been no stranger to hooking up with girls at parties where everyone could see but as he’d grown up a bit, he had become less comfortable doing so until he ended up stopping altogether. Something about it just wasn’t fun anymore. It didn’t fulfil him or even interest him in any way which worried him sometimes but he tried not to dwell on it too often, deciding that his work and his studies were more important in the long run anyway.

  
Just as Magnus was about to tell him another wild summer story, the principal addressed the group of staff and began the briefing.

  
Isak let out a sigh of relief that he wouldn’t have to listen to Magnus explain the inner working of going down on a girl in Ibiza and turned his attention to his boss.

  
She was a short, incredibly strong and intelligent woman whom Isak respected more than anyone he’d ever met in his life. She was called Sana and she shared Isak’s keen interest science which is how Isak suspects he got this job. They’d gotten into a heated discussion about cell growth in his interview and bonded over theories.

  
“I trust that you’ve all had a wonderful summer break,” Sana said, smiling brightly. “But this is when the work really starts again, as a team we have to be focused and committed to the education of the students here at Hartvig Nissen. Lessons will be carried out as normal today and students will be arriving shortly as I know you’re all aware.” She paused and looked across the table. Isak followed her gaze and was surprised to see a face that he was sure he recognised from somewhere.

  
“We have a new staff member joining us today, I hope that you will all make him feel welcome here. Would you like to introduce yourself?” Sana directed that last part to the owner of the familiar face who smiled politely and stood up from his seat. He was tall, taller than he had looked sitting down and he had muddy blonde his hair styled in a messy quiff which only served to make him seem even taller. He wore a maroon button down that brought out the cool blue of his eyes and black slim pants which hugged his legs nicely. Isak noticed almost immediately that he looked good. He looked really good. Isak had no idea he was such a good judge of fashion choices. That must be why he was so memorised by him.

  
“Hey, my name’s Even.” He said, waving a hand in the general direction of the other staff with a small smile. His voice was deep. Deeper than Isak had been expecting. What had he been expecting? Why was he expecting anything at all? Where did he know that name from? Why were his palms suddenly clammy? “I’m the new Arts teacher and I’m so excited to be working with all of you! I actually attended this school a few years ago and it feels good to be back.”

Wait.

Isak’s brain momentarily short-circuited. Was he a student here a few years ago? Isak had also been a student here a few years ago. Is that where he recognised him from?  
After receiving a small clap from the Sana and the other professors Even sat back down and looked straight in Isaks direction.

  
Isak startled in his seat and almost turned around to check if Even was actually looking at something behind him. He offered him a nervous smile which Even responded to with a huge grin that took up pretty much his entire face. It made something in Isak’s stomach tingle for a split second before his attention was brought back to Sana as she started speaking again.

Isak tried to discreetly calm the blush that he knew was rising on his cheeks.

  
-

 

Once the briefing was over, Sana approached Isak who was grabbing himself a glass of water before his first class of the day was due to start.

  
“Hello Isak, it’s good to see you again.” Sana smiled, standing next to him at the sink with a mug of her own which had the periodic table printed on it in her hands.

  
“It’s good to see you too Sana,” Isak said before turning off the faucet and taking a small sip of his water. “Have you been doing much research over the holidays?”

  
Sana nodded excitedly. “Oh you bet, I’ll have to fill you in on my findings sometime soon but for now I was wondering if I could ask you for a favour.”

  
Isak tiled his head slightly to the side. “Sure, what do you need?”

  
“I was thinking,” She began. “You and Even are of a similar age and you’ve both in similar places in your life and I think you would be a great person to make him feel more comfortable here. You know, make sure that he knows how things are run around here.”

  
Isak’s heart jumped a little in his chest and he wasn’t really sure why.

  
“I could do that, no problem!” He smiled and Sana called Even over instantly.

  
“I’ll leave you two to hit it off, have a good day!” She called back as she walked out of the staff room and down the hall.

  
Isak was still stood next to the sink when Even came over to him with the same huge grin on his face as he’d given Isak earlier. Now that he was standing close to him, Isak felt suddenly very nervous and he was finding it difficult to think of anything to say. Thankfully, Even was the one who initiated the conversation.

  
“This is going to sound weird,” He said in his ridiculously deep voice that made Isak’s stomach tingle again. “But I know you.”

  
Isak almost choked on his water which earned him a laugh from Even. “You – you what?” He stammered, his mouth struggling to keep up with his brain, which was racing a mile a minute.

  
“I know you.” Even repeated. “We were here at the same time, I was a year above you. Even Bech Naesheim.” Even pointed to himself as if that would help jog Isaks memory. “I joined in my third year.”  
Oh. Isak did know him. He remembered him.

Well, he remembered the rumours about him at least. Not that he believed any of them, but he definitely remembered them.

  
From what he’d heard, Even was trouble.


	2. Mundane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even sits in on Isak's class and he has some thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos and support so far I'm glad people are enjoying this story.  
> This chapter is a little shorter but it features grumpy Isak so I hope that makes up for it. 
> 
> Again, big thanks to Itziar for inspiring me to write this <3

Wednesday:

Isak returned to Nissen two days after he’d met Even and he can’t stop thinking about him. 

They’d talked for a while after Sana had introduced them and he seemed like nothing but a kind and charming guy who made him laugh. He looked forward to seeing him again today. 

Sana greeted him in the staffroom again with a smile. “Good morning, Isak.” She said, sipping her coffee from her periodic table mug. “I have another favour to ask of you.” 

“Sure, what’s up?” 

“Even consulted with me yesterday and he said he was having trouble getting into the swing of teaching so I was wondering if he could sit in on one of your classes today. Your students always produce great results so what you’re doing is clearly working and I noticed that you two were getting along nicely on Monday.” 

Isak grinned at the compliment on his teaching style and nodded his head. “Yeah, he seems like a good guy. I’ll help him out.” 

Sana clapped her hands once. “Great, thanks Isak! Now I’ve got to get back to my office I have a meeting with some parents in a few minutes.” 

Once she’d gone, Isak made his way over to the microwave where Even was standing. Today he was wearing the same slim black pants but this time they were accompanied by a tight black tee with long sleeves that he’d rolled up to his elbows. He looked very professional, Isak liked that.

When Even saw him coming he gave Isak the same grin that he had two days earlier and raised his mug in Isak’s direction. 

“Ah, the science wizard returns.” Even said, bowing his head as if worshipping Isak. 

Isak made a sound that was somewhere in between a giggle and a scoff which sounded mostly just like he was choking. He kind of was choking. Even made him feel so nervous and he couldn’t put his finger on why. 

“So-,” Isak began, clearing his throat and looking up at Even. His eyes were bright and comforting and his tongue was resting in between his canine and his bottom tooth in concentration. It made Isak even more nervous and he cleared his throat again. “Sana told me you’d be sitting in on my class today?” 

Even nodded intently, “Yes! If that’s okay, I just really need something to base my teaching on. This is my first teaching job so I’m a little nervous.” 

Even was nervous? Well at least Isak wasn’t the only one.

“Well, I’m heading to my first class right now if you wanted to join?” 

“Sounds great! Lead the way, professor Valtersen.” Even said, putting his arms out to usher Isak out of the room. 

Isak paused for a second. He didn’t remember telling Even his surname. Odd. 

“Is everything okay?” He heard Even ask. 

“Oh yes, um my classroom is this way.” He said, his pace quickening ever so slightly. 

-

Even took a seat at the back of the classroom as the students filtered in. Isak isn’t usually anxious about teaching a class but somehow, knowing Even was watching made him a little self-conscious about his methods.

Despite his worries, the lesson went smoothly with Isak writing questions up on the board, making references to the relevant pages in the textbook and explaining why plant cells have a cell membrane and a cell wall. 

Even approached Isak after the class was over.

“So, I hope that was helpful.” Isak smiled, putting some loose sheets of paper into his desk drawer. He hadn’t been looking at Even and when he moved to meet his gaze he saw that Even’s expression was quite blank, he almost looked uncomfortable. 

“Can I be honest with you?” He said, his voice small in the large room. 

Isak didn’t say anything but waited for Even to continue, his heartbeat quickening to that of a hummingbird. 

“I find your style of teaching to be…” Even looked up at the ceiling as if he was searching for the right word. “Mundane.” Is what he settled on saying. 

Isak blinked once. Mundane? Excuse me? 

“Mundane?” He repeated dumbly, beginning to disassociate from the situation completely.

“All you do is talk at the class, tell them what to write. That just seems boring to me.” 

Isak was sure that Even didn’t mean for his words to be hurtful but he couldn’t help but find himself becoming slowly more and more angry. 

“I’ll have you know, Even,” He said, trying his best to not let his tone give away his annoyance at Even’s quite frankly snobbish attitude. “That my students produce great grades and I have had no complaints about my teaching style before.” 

He readjusted his glasses in an attempt to look smart and folded his arms. 

Even smiled curtly. “Maybe that’s because you’re quite intimidating. You teach so seriously, have a little fun.” 

Isak really couldn’t tell if that had been a serious comment or a joke. None the less, he took offence and suddenly found it impossible to hide his frustration. 

“I’d like you to leave now please Even.” He said coldly, turning his back to him now. 

He heard even huff. “Oh come on Isak, don’t be like that I was just trying to help.” His voice was a little wobbly like he knew he shouldn’t have said anything but he didn’t apologise. 

Isak spun back around. “I don’t need your help Even. Who said I needed your help? You’ve been here for two days and you think you’re qualified to give me advice? Please leave my classroom.” 

He wasn’t shouting yet but his voice had risen, he really did not want to cause a scene in his place of work. How dare Even? Coming into Isak’s classroom and judging him. Who does he think he is? 

Even sighed. He looked upset but Isak didn’t care. He was the one that should be upset, he was the one that had just been insulted. 

“Fine.” Even said shortly. “I’ll see you around, I guess.” And with that he turned on his heels and walked out of the room, his head tilted towards the ground in what must have been embarrassment. 

Fuck Even. Isak thought. Fuck Even and his messy blonde hair. Fuck Even and his charming smile. Fuck Even and his deceivingly kind personality. Maybe Isak should have believed the rumours about him in high school.

Yeah. Fuck Even.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! 
> 
> It seems that Isak and Even have started off on the wrong foot and Isak is a grump at heart.
> 
> Kudos and suggestions are always welcome!
> 
> <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!
> 
> We all know Even is a sweetheart and Isak is wrong about the rumors but will he find that out? :o
> 
> Kudos and suggestions are always welcome.
> 
> Hopefully, I'll have the next chapter up soon I have an exam next week so it might have to be after that.
> 
> <3


End file.
